In the 1960s, Fidel Castro became the head of Cuba. He declared that Cuba does not practice any religion. He also took out religious holidays from the local calendars and prohibited any religious practice in the country. Christmas, Lent and other religious occasions were banned from being celebrated. However, there were a number of venues where Castro still let people showcase decors during religious occasions, such as hotels and tourist spots. Some business owners were allowed to put up Christmas decorations to lure in foreign customers. In other places in Cuba, however, Christmas was almost nonexistent. The Catholic Church continued to plead with the government to let them celebrate religious days in public.

In 1997, Castro finally decided to be more lenient in terms of religious holiday celebrations. When Pope John Paul visited the country in 1998, Castro took away the ban on celebrating religious occasions to honor the Pope.

Afterwards, Christmas returned in Cuba and people were once again allowed to have fun during the religious holiday. They can attend mass in church and cook a special dinner for loved ones.

At present, the Revolution Square in Havana holds a huge mass during Christmas. The church bells are rung to let people know that it is already Christmas Eve and they can gather to celebrate together. Other religious occasions like Easter and Lent were also allowed to be celebrated again in Cuba.

The Cuban flag and religion are currently given the same respect in the country at present and the country is known as secular.

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